Tag Archives: state of the union address

OK, everyone has said their peace regarding the State of the Union speech. I guess it’s my turn.

I must admit that I was dreading that night. I was so close to not even watching it. I never cared for Trump’s voice, his inflection, his mannerisms, his facial expressions. There was pretty much nothing I liked along those lines.

I had also prejudged the speech – figuring I knew what he was going to say and how he would act. So why even watch? But I decided to suck it up and watch it anyway. I’m glad I did. This was not campaign Trump or rookie Trump. This was our president and a statesman. read more

from Conservative Review:

Trump must commit to ensuring policy overrides personality.

Almost all of President Trump’s prepared policy speeches in primetime have been well written and capably delivered in the proper tenor. While State of the Union addresses in recent years have become less impactful, Trump’s speeches always have the potential to open the ears of more voters to his message because those turned off by him are primarily hostile to his persona, not his message. The fact that he delivers a serious and substantive speech gets him more mileage than a typical president. Thus, there is no doubt, much like last year’s address to Congress, this one will be well received, perhaps more so.

The speech was perfectly written to blend together the president’s unorthodox way of approaching issues together with formal rhetoric, story-telling, and props. Unlike with Clinton and Obama, the fact that this was a lengthy speech was actually a good thing. Americans need to hear this version of Trump more often. And those watching the optics of the speech were entreated to a spectacle where he looked quite moderate and the Democrats looked extreme beyond anything we’ve seen before – where there is no regard for American dreamers, victims of illegal alien crime, success against terrorists, or standing for the national anthem. read more

by: the Common Constitutionalist

What Obama State of the Union show would be complete (complete disaster that is) without a diatribe on Climate Change and further ruination of the coal and oil industries with his call to “accelerate the transition away from dirty energy.” However climate weenies lamented that, “there was no laundry list of bold programs and budding proposals this time.” That is a shame.

“It’s time to not only reform our fossil fuel leasing program, we need to keep fossil fuels in the ground,” said Erich Pica, president of Friends of the Earth, in a statement. Translation: the federal government must confiscate more and more land and place it off limits to any kind of exploration. Great idea! That will solve our energy needs moving forward.

“In fields from Iowa to Texas, wind power is now cheaper than dirtier, conventional power. On rooftops from Arizona to New York, solar is saving Americans tens of millions of dollars a year on their energy bills, and employs more Americans than coal…Meanwhile, we’ve cut our imports of foreign oil by nearly sixty percent, and cut carbon pollution more than any other country on Earth,” Obama exclaimed. read more

USA Today wrote on Sunday that “President Obama is taking a dramatic step to show he opposes Republican efforts to slow or halt the admission of refugees over terrorist concerns: He has invited a Syrian refugee to attend his State of the Union Address.” Is the refugee going to be seated next to the empty “Gun Violence” chair?

Anyway – it’s hardly a dramatic step. As I reminded people on Monday , Obama had an illegal immigrant child sitting with Michelle during last year’s dog and pony show. So this is just the guilt-trip du jour.

And this invited refugee is hardly emblematic or remotely representative of the others he wants to bring here. The invitee is a 55 year old scientist from Syria who’s been living in Detroit for the past month. He claims “his family home was destroyed by a bomb, killing his wife, daughter and five other relatives.” Was it one he made? Sorry – I couldn’t resist.

I guess he is now all alone.

So I found it odd when the refugee scientist Refaai Hamo said, “I was thrilled when I heard that President Barack Obama is welcoming us into the United States.” Us? Who’s us? I thought his family was killed? The report neglected to explain this apparent disparity. They also neglect to reveal what kind of scientist he is. read more

by: the Common Constitutionalist

Well, I tried. I tried to watch the State of the Union speech, but I couldn’t do it. I even turned back to it a few times – heard about the 1 percenters who need to give back to the middle class. I don’t know how that will work? Answer – it won’t and it isn’t supposed to.

I also heard his challenge to try to support a family on just $15,000 per year and those who think it’s possible should go ahead and try. That’s bogus and he knows it, for far less than 1% of workers support a family on minimum wage.

Ernst

Okay, that’s enough of the buffoon in chief. We all knew what he was going to say before he said it anyway.

As for the Republican response, I can describe the performance of Iowa Senator Joni Ernst as… well… what’s the word? It’s not electric. It’s not inspiring, great or motivating. It’s more like… wooden, as if Geppetto had just fashioned her.

It was a major disappointment with its typical Republican “repeal and replace” Obamacare message. But considering who put her up – the establishment Republicans – that’s to be expected.

Then it was on to the Tea Party Express rebuttal of “The One’s” speech. Now don’t get me wrong – I’m glad Congressman Curtis Clawson was both humbled and grateful to give the Tea Party Express response, but he like Ernst lacked any passion. I mean zero appeal. read more

When watching (if you have the stomach for it) Obama’s State of the Union show tonight, with his laundry list of Nanny-State proposals and usurpation of our God-given rights, remember that nothing of this world lasts forever. That includes nations.

The Egyptians, Greeks, Romans; none stood the test of time.

They do, however, have one thing in common. They all lasted several hundred to several thousand years. We may not be so lucky.

In 1787 a crowd gathered outside the hall where the Constitutional convention was held in order to learn what had been produced behind closed doors. As the doors were opened and the delegates began to emerge, a woman identified only as Mrs. Powell of Philadelphia asked Benjamin Franklin, “Well, Doctor, what have we got, a republic or a monarchy?”

With no hesitation whatsoever, Franklin responded, “A Republic, madam, if you can keep it.”

The more I learn of the founders of our nation, the more convinced I am that they were and are still the greatest collection of minds to walk this earth. They were divinely inspired and prescient.

Franklin knew, as did the other founders, the republic, like children, must be nurtured and given constant attention, lest they stray down the wrong path. In the case of the republic, it is the path toward tyranny.

The founders charged the citizens of this country to actively pursue righteousness in our elected officials, and to remain alert to the activities at every level of government.

With each passing decade, we have become forgetful and complacent. The average American today knows little to nothing of our own founding or the original intent of our government, or what those people endured to allow us the opportunity to rule ourselves.

Yet over time we have willingly squandered that opportunity to instead choose to be ruled by those who should serve us.

Some would say that the citizenry is just too busy to be bothered by such things. As our society has “evolved” and “progressed”, it is said that things have just become too complicated and the founders could not have foreseen the problems of today. Woodrow Wilson said just that as he advocated for a “Living Constitution“. read more

On Congress’s first full-day back in session, twenty-Nine GOP Freshmen lawmakers gathered outside the United States Capitol building to call on the President to challenge the United States Senate to pass a federal budget.

Georgia’s 8th District Congressman, Austin Scott, who is also the president of the GOP Freshman class, remarked at Wednesday’s press conference, “Sen. Reid would like to say that Freshmen Republicans are responsible for the gridlock in Washington, but that’s simply not true.

We’ve passed a budget. We’ve passed twenty-seven jobs bills. We stand willing to allow the process to work. Sen. Reid has closed the door at every opportunity.”

Next Tuesday, President Obama will deliver his annual State of the Union address to Congress. Coincidentally, that day will also mark 1,000 days that the country has been operating without a budget.

To that point, Rep. Scott further commented, “The future of America is bright, but without a budget, the state of our Union is uncertain.
We’re here simply to ask the President to challenge Harry Reid and the Senate to pass a Budget — pass a budget so that the job creators in America have some certainty and can go out there and do what Americans want to do and that’s get back to work.”

Wednesday’s event occurred just as President Obama announced that he is denying the application for construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline – a project that is projected to bring in more than 100,000 American jobs.

Upon hearing the news from a reporter in attendance, Rep. Scott responded, “That’s absolutely ridiculous.” He went on to say; “The bottom line is the only way to break this country’s dependency on oil from the mid-East is to bring things like the Keystone pipeline in from Canada and to start drilling here in America. I think the fact of the matter is, if the President rejects that, I think he is absolutely out of touch with America and what it takes to get this economy back on track.”

In the days leading up to next week’s State of the Union address and the 1,000 days milestone, House GOP Freshmen plan to utilize new media to encourage their constituents to reach out to the President about the need for a federal budget.

Editorial Comment: I agree with the Congressman’s points. I am however, growing weary of the couched way in which these guys speak. “We’re here simply to ask the President to challenge Harry Reid and the Senate to pass a Budget”? Really? Does anyone truly believe Obama gives a crap what we think or that he and Reid aren’t purposely marching in lock step? Obama and his ilk have proven they will do whatever they want, whenever they want and the Constitution and us be damned.

It’s time to take the gloves of civility off. Stay honest, stay forthright, but get tough and stop pulling your punches. Real conservatives firebrands are what we need now, not golden-tongued orators.